Comfort object...?

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My husband made an interesting observation about me the other day that I somehow managed to overlook. Apparently I am unusually attached to my ipod touch. I never leave home without it, use it for an alarm clock, play a certain game on it when I am stressed to calm down. I lost it the other day and was crying, and my husband assured me that if we didn't find it we would replace it. When I pointed out that we couldn't afford it, he said that he knew how important it was to me and that we would find a way. Apparently when I don't have it I stim more and am obviously stressed. I have even gone outside at night (which I don't do. At all.) to get it if I leave it in the truck. He said he figured it was an autism thing. We started calling it jokingly my "comfort object" from the phrase from the book The Giver used to refer to a child's stuffed animal.

Is it? has anyone else had some inanimate object that was necessary to normal daily function? Is this an autism thing?

I have a cuddly yellow cat toy that goes with me everywhere. I also have a pillow friend that I put in my bag when I know I'm going to be nervous about something; and I have a yellow chick cuddly toy that I take with me in my backpack when I'm scared about something.
I feel weird without one of them with me.

Your ipod sounds like a more complicated coping tool than a comfort object...although a comfort object could be a coping tool as well.

I have my ipod to drown out the world and soothe my brain with predictable rhythms of sound, my watch with it's alarms and timers, and my various fidget toys that I carry around with me. I also have many comfort objects that I don't necessarily need every day, but can't imagine not having on hand when I need them.

I have my kindle for this too. Playing the app games really helps recenter and keep me calm. I take it to work with me and play it on my breaks. Before my kindle I was attached at the hip to my computer and stressed endlessly at work. I love my kindle.

In my opinion, anything can become a comfort object. It can be an electronic, a toy.. whatever. I see it as the one and same thing. What is a coping object anyways beyond an object that helps you feel comforted and feel secure?

Sorry, I rewrote what I said.. as I thought I mixed it up.. but it works either way I said it.. sorry lol

My laptop is my comfort object. I take it to Stepping Stones, and my parents place. The only places that I don't take it, are to my volunteer job and my friends' places.

I have a container of things at work I like to fiddle with. When I get uncomfortable, like after a conversation or a change in routine, I will play around with one of those things while watching my machines. I also fiddle around with things when I have to talk to someone because it takes my mind off the awkwardness of initiating communication.

The internet is generally comforting for me.